Pelt or skin dehairing machine



March 10, 1931. P. c. DONNER 1,795,643

FELT OR SKIN DEHAIRING MACHINE Filed Jan. 16, 1929 INVENTOR. FfiZ'ZZ/v Cflonnez;

Patented Mar. 10, 1931 PATENT OFFICE PHILIP c. DONNER, or smvnvrrr, NEW JERSEY FELT OR SKIN DEHAIRING MACHINE Application filed January 16, 1929. Serial No. 332,917

This invention relates to improvements in machines used for removing hair or fur from animal skins or pelts; and the invention has reference, more particularly, to a novel machine in which a plurality of movable shear blades or knives are carried on an endless belt and caused to travel rectilinearly in cooperative shearing relation to a fixed bed-blade or knife, with a minimum displacement of adjacent air.

eretofore the dehairing machines most commonly in use employ a rotary cutter having a plurality of shearing blades radially extending therefrom and revolved about the axis of the cutter; said shearing blades, as thus revolved, being adapted to cooperate with a fixed bed blade or knife. In machines of such type, the rapid rotation of the rotary cutter tends to create whirling air currents of very considerable force in the vicinity of the cutter. These air currents are highly objectionable since they tend to whirl away severed hair particles, which are carried away with dust and dirt accumulating during deinconsiderable loss of valuable hair or fur. Since these dehairing machines are used extensively in the felt hat manufacturing industry, to obtain the hair or fur for felting operations, the loss of any considerable amount of such hair or fur in the dehairing operation is an economic waste. Having these facts in mind, I have sought to provide a dehairing machine in the operation of which such losses would be eliminated. It is the object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a novel construction and arrangement of dehairing machine wherein the hair or fur cutting means is so designed, and functions by such mode of operation, that generation of the objectionable whirling air currents is eliminated, and wherein such air movement as is incident to the operation of the machine may be utilized to control the movement of liberated fur or hair particles, so that the same may be deposited and recovered, thus avoiding waste and producing a more eflicient machine generally.

Other objects of this invention, not at this time more particularly enumerated, will be hairing operations, thereby resulting in nov clearly understood from the following detailed description of the same.

This invention is illustrated panying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of the novel dehairing machine, made according to and embodying the principles of this invention; and Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view at the cutting point of the machine.

Similar characters of reference are employed in the above described views, to indicate corresponding parts.

The illustrative embodiment of this invention shown in said drawings, comprises a suitable bed-plate or base 1 having a support ing frame 2 of any desired design. Fixed on said base 1 and extending upwardly therefrom are standards or side frames 3. Journaled in and extending transversely between the lower ends of the standards or side frames 3 is a driven shaft 4:, upon which are fixed wide faced toothed chain pulleys or sprockets 5. Fixed on an exterior end of said shaft 4 is a driving pulley 6, which may be driven by a belt 7 from a convenient power source, or any other suitable transmission means for applyingpower to the shaft 4 may be em ployed. Journaled in and extending transversely between the upper ends of the standards or side frames 3 is a shaft 8, the same being vertically aligned with the driven shaft 4. Fixed on said shaft 8 are wide faced toothed chain pulleys or sprockets 9. Ar ranged to run over and between said chain pulleysor sprockets 5 and 9 is a chain belt means 10, toothed to lit the latter. The bed plate or base 1 is cut away to provide an opening 11 to clear the lower chain pulley and chain belt, and also to provide a passage for purposes to be subsequently set forth.

' Secured to the outer faces of the links of said chain belt 10 are transverse shear blades or knives 12, which are pitched (as carried by the forward downwardly running course of said chain belt) outwardly and downwardly in angular projection.

Mounted on the bed-plate or base 1, so as to be opposed to the forward downwardly running course of said chain belt and the in the accomshear blades or knives 12 carried thereby, is a stationary bed knife or blade 1.). Said bed knife or blade 13 is clamped between the retaining blocks 1st and 15 which are secured to said lJQtl-Pliltt or base l in any suitable manner. Said bed-knife or blade 1?, may be mounted and supported in any other manner found convenient, so long as the cutting edge thereof is presented for cooperation with the movable shear blades or knives 12.

lvlounted adjacent to the operative or cutting edge of said bed-knife or blade 13 is a suitable means for supporting a skin or pelt A and feeding the same so to present the hai thereof subject to the action of bedknife or blade 13 and shear blades 1' knives 12. Such means may consist in the feed rollers R and R. or any other suitable means may be provided.

Preferably nle-ans are provided to support the chain belt 10 against undue play as it runs between the chain pulleys or sprockets 5 and 9. and especially with respect to the downwardly running course thereof. For this purpose the vertically spaced shafts iii are journaled in and between the standards or side f 'amcs 3 behind the downwardly runninp course of the chain belt, and mountei'l on said shaft-s 16 are idler chain pulleys or sprockets 17 to engage and support said latter course of the chain belt; in like manner. a shaft 18 is journaled between the standards or side frames 3 behind the rearward upwardly running course of the chain be t. and mounted on said shaft 18 is an idler chain pulley or sprocket 19 to engage such course of the chain belt.

Running beneath said bed-plate or base 1 is a conveyor belt 20 which is aligned beneath the opening or passage 11. Suitable guide chute means 21 is arranged intermediate said conveyor belt 20 and said opening or passage 11.

The chain belt 10 and the shear blades or knives '12 carried thcrel are pncferably enclosed by a housing or hood the same being open. as at 23. to permit the skins or pelts A to be fed into operative relation to the cutting knives.

In the operation of the dehairing dilly i12- tus. power is applied to the. shaft t to in turn drive the chain belt 10 thereby causing the transverse shear blades or knives 1:2 to be successively moved downward into cooperative cutting relation to and with the oed knife or blade l3. Owing to the mul 'plicity of movable shear blades or knives the movement of the chain belt may be relatively slow, while yet obtainin a rapid sequence of cutting operations as the shear blades or knives 12 are successively carried past the stationary bed knife or blade '13 {is a consequence of this mode of operation. and by reason of the rectilinear movement of the shear blades or knives 1.2 at the cutting point,

rapid displacement of air in the vicinity of the cutting point is eliminated, and '-.'-.'hirling air currents avoided. Such air movement as may be induced is in a downward direction toward the convevm belt 20. 'ii'hcn a skin or pelt, with its hair or fur side down, is calried around the feed roller lt. the hair is combed or pressed bzukward so as to bend back the hair or fur filaments, at points close to the skin or pelt surface. "er the cutting edge of the bed knife or blade l3 (see l ig. As the transverse shear blades or knives 12 descend across the cutting edge of the bed knife orblade 13, the hair or fur lilamcnts are severed from the skin or pelt A, and cuttings from the latter :11 also producml. The major portion of the thus severed hair or fur filaments slide do\ invardly over the inclined surface of block 15. ui'idisturbed by whirling air curren a, from which block they may fall into a receptacle suitably placed for the reception thereof. Any hair or fur particles which fall imvardly, with skin or pelt cuttings, over the cutting edge of the bed knife or blade 13 are not whirled away and lost, but are free to fall through the opening or passage 1], chute 21, and thence to the conveyer belt 20. by which the same are carried away for deposit in another receptacle, being afterward separated from skin or pelt cuttings and recovered. The moven'ient of hair particles through the passage 11 and chute 21 to the conveyor belt 20, is assisted by whatever air movement induced by the comparatively slow movement of the chain belt and shear blades or knives carried thereby. It will thus be apparent that substantially every particle of hair or fur filaments severed from the skin or pelt will be recovered and that wastage and loss thereof, which is consequent on the use of rapidly revolved rotary cutting knives is prevented.

Owing to the very considerable number of movable blades possible to be used in amachine made according to this invention. each knife makes fewer shearing contacts with the bed knife during a. total number of cuts by entire machine, than is the case when a rotary knife with but few blades is employed and consequently the efficient cutting edge is maintained for much longer periods of time, and necessity for removing and resl'iarpening dull knives arises less frequently.

I am aware that many changes may be made in the various arrangements and combinations of the several devices and parts, well as in the details of the construction thereof, without departing from the scope of this invention as above described, and as defined in the appended claims. Hence, I do not limit my invention to the exact arrangements and combinations of said devices and parts as described in the foregoing specification, nor do I confine myself to the exact details of the construction of said parts as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

I claim 2-- 1. In a machine for dehairing skins and pelts, a stationary bed-knife, an endless chain belt having a downwardly moving course running in rectilinear plane opposite the cutting edge of said bed-knife, a plurality of sprockets engaging and supporting said downwardly moving course to hold the same to a truly rectilinear movement, a multiplicity of transverse shear blades carried by said belt and successively moved thereby into cooperative cutting relation to said bed-knife with minimum air disturbance, and transmission means for operating said belt.

2. In a machine for dehairing skins and pelts. a bed-plate, side frames supported on said bed-plate, a stationary bed-knife supported on said bed-plate, an endless belt having a downwardly moving course running in rectilinear plane opposite the cutting edge of said bed-knife, a multiplicity of transverse shear blades carried by said belt and successively moved thereby into cooperative cutting relation to said bed-knife with minimum air disturbance, and means journaled in and between said side frames to support and drive said belt, and to maintain said downwardly moving course truly straight.

3. In a machine for dehairing skins and pelts, a bed-plate, side frames supported on said bed-plate, a stationary bed-knife supported on said bed-plate, an endless belt having a downwardly moving course running in rectilinear plane opposite the cutting edge of said bed-knife, a multiplicity of transverse shear blades carried by said belt and successively moved, thereby into cooperative cutting relation to said bed-knife with minimum air disturbance, means journaled in and between said side frames to support and drive said belt, said bed-plate having a passage through which the lower end of said belt moves, and a conveyor means aligned beneath said passage.

l. In a machine for dehairing skins and pelts, a stationary bed-knife, an endless belt having a downwardly moving course running in rectilinear plane opposite the cutting edge of said bed-knife, a multiplicity of transverse shear blades carried by said belt and successively moved thereby into cooperative cutting relation to said bed-knife with minimum air disturbance, transmission means for operating said belt, means to enclose said belt and shear blades, said enclosing means having an opening at the cutting point of said bed-knife and shear blades, and means for supporting a skin or pelt subject to the cutting action of said bed-knife and shear blades, a conveyor means beneath the cutting point of said bed-knife and chute means to receive and deliver to said conveyor severed hair particles and pelt scrap carried downwardly beyond said cutting point.

5. In a machine for dehairing skins and pelts, a bed-plate, side frames supported on said bed-plate a stationary bed-knife supported on said bed-plate, an endless chain belt having a downwardly moving course running in rectilinear plane opposite the cutting edge of said bed-knife, a multiplicity of transverse shear blades carried by said belt and successively moved thereby into cooperative cutting relation to said bed-knife with minimum air disturbance, shafts journaled in and between said side frames in spaced apart relation, chain pulleys on said shafts I for supporting and moving said chain belt,

means for driving one of said shafts to operate said chain belt, means for supporting a skin or pelt subject to the cutting action of said bed-knife and shear blades, said bedplate having a passage through which the lower end of said chain belt moves, and a hair and pelt scrap receiving conveyer means aligned beneath said passage.

In testimony, that I claim the invention set forth above I have hereunto set my hand this 10th day of January, 1929.

PHILIP C. BONNER. 

